Thursday, October 9, 2008

This post comes from my good buddy Hayden. You'll see him pull a mono on anything with more than one wheel and can make the best coffee on earth while doing so. He wrote this tip on a napkin at a traffic light while in a trackstand on beach road this morning. That's a fact. Thanks Hayden...

Even though a friend once said to me that if he "...sees another skinny leg black jean wearing yuppie on a fixie taking a photo while typing on his mac..." he would walk over an knock him off, it is a skill.

Whether it be on the track it self, the bunch in the morning, at the traffic lights commuting to work, or starting a mountain bike race, a track stand is one of those major skills in your quiver that everyone should learn. It helps your handling skills, by way of BALANCE. Simply taught, a track stand doesn't even use brakes.

It is easier to learn with trainers on, because you will be dabbing your feet for a while to get the real hang of it. and be sure to practice in an easy gearing, so that you can ride out of the stand. The way I learned was on a grassy knoll with a slight uphill rise. Grass is soft and green, but also adds some more resistance for balance.

1. While standing up on the pedals, ride up to the slight rise on the grass, and position the bike so that it is pointing at either 10 o'clock or 2 o'clock, depending on what side you prefer first.

2. Turn the wheel slightly so that it faces back towards the 12 o'clock.

3. Now BALANCE. You don't want to use the brakes - use the gears to keep you in place. Gravity will force your front wheel back down, but your gearing will force you back up. So when you feel the bike go back down the hill slightly, apply some pressure to the pedals and go up a foot or so, then relieve the pressure and roll back, and so on and so on.

4. With the front wheel going slightly across the front of your body (at 10 or 2 o'clock) allows you to spread the base of the bike, so that it can be moved to balance you.

5. As with all balance techniques, focus on one spot on the ground. If you follow something moving, you are going to move with it. Remember to breathe.

Once you get this on grass with trainers, then use your clipless pedals, then try it all on the road.

You will notice that a lot of roads are not flat, and allow you to practice this technique a bit easier on the road. Try not the first few times in busy traffic... it can be embarrassing.

Soon enough, you will be able to do this on the flat, by forcing the bike backwards, but pedaling forward at the same time.

When you are in the city next time, watch a courier at the lights. They rock. They do it all day and are my personal local hero's. Weaving through the traffic like a sword through the air, but when they stop at the lights (sometimes.....) they don't unclip, they just be.